


As Dusk Descends into Darkness

by Espisayer, moustacheMythology



Series: Vampire/Vampire Hunter AU [1]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Name Used for Russia, Angst and Humor, F/F, Gothic Romance, Human AU, Human Names Used, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Light Angst, Mentions of War, Minor Violence, Playing fast and loose with history and folklore, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Seriously I Think I Channeled Jane Austen When I Wrote This, Slow Burn, Some vigorous hand holding, Supernatural AU - Freeform, Vampire/Vampire Hunter AU, minor PTSD mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:48:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23897059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Espisayer/pseuds/Espisayer, https://archiveofourown.org/users/moustacheMythology/pseuds/moustacheMythology
Summary: Erzsébet and Gilbert are hired to hunt down a monster plaguing a far off village. It should have been a normal job but neither the monster nor the mysterious siblings who hired them seem to be what they expected...ORIn which, Erzsébet and Gilbert kick some ass and fall in love with some angsty goths.
Relationships: Belarus/Hungary (Hetalia)
Series: Vampire/Vampire Hunter AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1722361
Kudos: 9





	1. Cover Page

**Author's Note:**

> SO! Finally finished it! 
> 
> This was written for the HetaBang2020 event hosted by @hetabang on tumblr. You can find me on tumblr @still-a-hetalian and my partner @espisayer who drew this fantastic artwork, and who is to thank for this being completed at all. Seriously I cannot thank you enough!
> 
> Also note on some of the human names:  
> Russia - Aleksandr  
> Ukraine - Katyushka  
> I think all other names mentioned are generally the accepted canon/fanon names but if you aren't sure let me know. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy it and please leave kudos and what you thought in the comments!

**As Dusk Descends into Darkness...**

It’s difficult to tell where this story begins.

You could say it started with a great and terrible war that lasted years and took thousands of young people from their families, leaving little but ruin in their wake. Spreading throughout the continent row by row, shot by shot. 

Or.

You could say it started with the birth of a new dynasty, deep in the black forests of Eastern Europe. Where modern Western ideals mixed with the traditions of old, so firmly rooted in the soil and the memories of those who survived. A dynasty twisting and twining, seeping into the dark soil of the ground and polluting all those who tread over it.

Or.

You could say it started on a dark and stormy night – as all good stories of romance and woe begin.


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now we begin our story...

__

_Eastern Russian Empire, 1866_

It was all too simple really. Far too easy. This nagging idea about the lack of dramatics refused to leave her alone. She and her entire family were dead. Dead. Gone. Cold as the winter ground and nearly as unbreachable.

In the span of one week every single problem she shouldered upon herself during the first sixteen years of her life vanished. She was lost on how to take on the terror of an endless expanse of eternity stretching out before her.

This mounting dread was unable to make her heart pound, as it would’ve only a week before. She no longer felt her blood pump through her veins, adrenaline surging – sometimes the only thing able to get her out of her sick bed – in the face of unseen dangers.

Tension in the air but never brought down upon her. Never upon her. The sickly youngest. A beautiful and pale waif of a daughter. Too fragile to holler at or trouble with responsibilities. Her weak muscles and straining lungs spared her the torments her siblings faced. No, their parents rarely had the gall – and now never would – to show her their ugliness.

Those torments were hidden behind closed doors and exposed only by the bruises on Katya’s wrists or the way Aleksandr would wince when someone would close a door just a little too loudly – imperceptible to most but spoke volumes to someone who loved them so dearly.

For those so close to death, most had two paths before them. Most threw themselves into prayer, throwing themselves upon the pulpits and feet of a god unmoved by their displays of worship and adoration.

It was a display of fear. Absolute terror of the unknown beyond this life, bargaining with what little they had on this mortal coil hoping that the next would bring them less strife.

But for those like Natalya – who had been so well-acquainted with death since her birth – for whom a common cold could bring her a last breath, near collapse most days, endless hours spent lying in a bed drinking every some so-called modern medical cure from the endless blur of physicians sweeping through her family’s halls. All a fruitless effort to cure her of this invisible wasting disease.

Idleness and a certain level of freedom which came from a life spent as a breathing corpse brought her to the second, lesser traveled path which she walked down. The expansive library curated by generation after generation of her noble family was slowly explored by Natalya in secret. During the dead of night when she could no longer bear to stay confined to her bed and her nursemaid fast asleep in a chair by the fireplace, Natalya for years would wander through the freezing and dark halls of their castle at night whenever she had the strength. Searching the stacks and stacks of books for anything that might help her situation.

During her studies she found books on everything from histories of far-off lands, to folk medicines, to tomes on the supernatural. Those were the ones that intrigued Natalya most. Crumbling spell-books and alchemic studies of necromancy and transfiguration. Those histories of vampires living alongside humans, medical studies of their physicality and traits, and most importantly, theories on how the rare and dangerous creatures were made interested Natalya the most.

The endless prayers recited at her bedside did little, her only comfort being her siblings sitting with her. Katya fed her mild broths and Aleks shared stories from town and histories he learned during his lessons. They were lessons Natalya was never allowed to sit in on as they feared the mental strain might kill her – but fear was always a double-edged sword as her ban from a formal education only made her desire for it grow. She longed for a life outside of this castle, this prison of hers. To see this vibrant and wonderful world she dreamed about, away from the sickness and terror hidden in these walls.

So when her sister told her through a throat so obviously raw from hours of crying (she always tried so hard to hide her tears but the puffy eyes and pale face always gave her away immediately) that their father arranged her to be married to a far-away lord rumored to have a temperament as cold as the frozen grounds he ruled, those years of secret study fed a plan in Natalya’s mind. A plan to free them from their chains.

The books on necromancy and vampirism were so elaborate with pages and pages of instructions and details all for one simple thing overwhelmed Natalya. So, when she finally put her theory into action one night, it went far more smoothly than anticipated.

As Natalya stared at the opened coffins in the family’s mausoleum on the edges of their crop of land, she was overcome with a begrudging sense of relief and anticipation. This was all so close to being over, but could still fail spectacularly.

Her mother and father’s coffins were sealed shut, never to arise, locked for eternity of whatever awaited the after death. Natalya clasped her cold hands in front of her, unable to keep still in anticipation, then turned and crossed the small stone room to her brother and sister’s coffins. Open wide, their pale faces set in the serene expression of the dead.

Natalya had been the first to rise from her grave – already so well-acquainted with death and accustomed to finding her way back to the land of the living. The family’s glasses of wine with dinner two nights previously laced with both the poison which would finally kill her and the necromantic potion which would bring her back (at least her and her siblings’ glasses, her parents were not shown that mercy) – a mass execution too swift to allow for any relatives to be notified of their passing. It was enough to bring her back something unholy and hungry, but safe, and stronger than she had ever been. And so, she sat on the small stone bench in the middle of the mausoleum, smoothed out the black funeral garb the housekeeper had buried her in, and waited patiently for her siblings to wake up.

+++++

_Western Prussia, 1876_

“ _Fuck!_ ”

“You know, I’d really rather you not use that kind of language in my bar.”

The white-haired, foul-mouthed man glared at the blond on the other side of the bar.

“Ludwig, I’ve heard plenty of people say far worse things in this place, and do I have to remind you that I’m the _older brother_?” Gilbert said, trying to mop the ale he spilled all over his shirt with a towel he nabbed from behind the bar.

“I’ll remember that when you start acting like it.”

_Ouch. That one hurt._

As Ludwig turned away to help another one of the patrons - a young man with light brown hair and an angelic smile - the inn door swung open and a tall brunette strode in.

“God, Gilbert, how many drinks in are you?” Erzsébet asked, eyeing Gilbert’s ruined shirt as she sat down on the stool beside him at the bar. She waved to Ludwig and he simply nodded back.

“You sound like my brother,” Gilbert grumbled, giving up his fruitless endeavor and launched his soiled rag at the back of his brother’s head. Before it hit though, Ludwig smoothly grabbed the rag out of the air and started shining a glass with the unsoiled bits.

Gilbert sighed.

“I’ll never understand why he doesn’t want to become a vampire hunter. Like c’mon, did you see that Lizzie?!” Gilbert gestured wildly at his younger brother across the bar.

Lizzie just rolled her eyes and accepted the glass of ale Ludwig slid her way.

“Stop pressuring him Gilbert. We all have different ideas about life. Us – we like hunting vampires and other monsters. Tracking them down, taking them out, saving people. All that. Ludwig? Well, there have to be the inn owners of the world. Otherwise - ” Erzsébet took a sip of her drink. “Where would we go to relax after a long day?”

Gilbert just grumbled.

“It’s just. How do you go from the mayhem of war to all _this_?” Gilbert spread his arms wide. “Nothing but pouring beers, counting coins, and cleaning up after people?”

“It’s peace, brother,” Ludwig wandered over. This was an old argument, neither brother would ever see eye to eye on it, but alas, that’s generally how siblings worked. “I said I wanted to settle down after the war, and now I have. I _enjoy_ this.”

“Really, Lud, you’re going to give up fighting with those big muscles of yours to what? Change bed sheets and book rooms?”

“Brother, this is my dream. And anyway, they’re incredibly useful in steering away trouble.” With that Ludwig made pointed eye contact with a man across the bar who seemed to be forcing conversation upon an impressively uninterested woman sitting a few stools down.

Ludwig made a show of crossing his arms, and showed off the aforementioned muscles. The man quickly seemed to lose interest in harassing the poor woman and scurried off to a table in the corner.

Gilbert could barely hold in his laughter.

“You’re right, baby bro, I suppose those arms of yours are useful for more than catching the eye of that young Italian friar that always seems to be hanging around you.”

Gilbert looked pointedly at the young man Ludwig had previously been talking to, and Ludwig flushed pink.

With that, Gilbert quickly slid off his perch and ran from the room before Ludwig could completely catch up with what he had just said.

Ludwig tried to grumble in protest to Erzsébet but she just laughed and gave him a smile.

“I see nothing wrong with it,” Erzsébet said gently. “The bar or the friar. Feliciano seems sweet.”

Ludwig just let out an ever-present sigh.

“Before I forget, Miss Erzsébet –“

“Ludwig, please, for the final time, call me Lizzie.”

“- Lizzie, a letter came for you this afternoon,” Ludwig said, reaching around under the bar to retrieve said letter and handed it over.

Lizzie turned the letter over in her hands. It was addressed to her and Gilbert, postmarked with a Russian Empire postal stamp. That was odd, it was rare they received letters from so far away.

Lizzie thanked Ludwig and left to go find Gilbert. 

She found him upstairs in his room at the inn, writing in one of the old, battered journals he always carried on him.

Lizzie cleared her throat and held up the letter when he looked up at her standing in the doorway. She stepped into the room and took a seat at the end of his bed, beside his small writing desk.

“We’ve got a letter,” she said, grabbing a small knife off the desk and breaking the seal of the papers.

“A job?” Gilbert prompted as she skimmed the paper.

“Yeah, out on the fringes of the Russian Empire. Maybe a few week’s ride from here if we can catch the next mail coach out of here?”

“We could probably cut that down if we take the rails at least part of the way.”

“Good idea,” Erzsébet trailed off as she reread the letter quietly. And then read it again. “ _Shit.”_

Picking up her tone, Gilbert tentatively asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Our employers are aristocrats.”

“Shit.”

“ _Aristocrats Gilbert.”_

“ _Shit,”_ Gilbert repeated.

“Exactly.”

“At least we’ll be well compensated. Who’s the letter from?”

“A Lord Braginsky,, he says he’s concerned about some deaths of a few people in town from possible vampire attacks.”

“Okay. So standard gig, we go in, take out the newborns, lay them to rest, collect our pay, and be on our way,” Gilbert said airily.

“Not quite.”

“Oh no.”

“Oh _yes._ Lord Braginsky said that the recentness of these killings is the issue since him and his two sisters are _vampires_. Some of the villagers’ children have been taken in the night, so they want us to go investigate and figure out if there is another vampire in the area. They claim they’d never hunted the villagers in the years since they turned and lived peacefully among them, until now.”

Erzsébet threw the letter on the desk in dismay.

“Gilbert, they better not make me wear a _dress_ , I refuse to dress up for these rich bastards.”

Gilbert just let out a loud, cackling laugh at that while Erzsébet just rolled her eyes at his amusement. She liked her trousers, they were easy to move in and easy to carry weapons with. After her time in the army wearing uniforms, she refused to give them up when they retired.

“I’m glad you find this funny; do you know how hard heavy dresses are to pack, never mind _fight in_?”

With that, Gilbert just laughs harder.

“Lizzie, I love how that’s what you’re hung up on,” he said, wiping a tear from his lashes. “Not our possible imminent death and the fact that we are being hired by _vampires to hunt other vampires_ , but a few extra yards of fabric.”

“Do you know how hard it is to hunt in full skirts?”

“Well no but –“

“Then you get no say,” Lizzie interrupts. “So. Are we actually doing this?”

“I don’t know Lizzie, how much are they paying us?”

Lizzie just points to the listed amount in the letter.

“With travel expenses included,” Lizzie adds.

“Fuck.”

“I know.”

“ _Fuck_.”

“ _I know.”_

“Lizzie, this could set us up for the year. Maybe two or three if we spend our money right! I could help Ludwig pay off the mortgage for the inn. _Lizzie_.”

With that Gilbert gets up and starts pacing around the small room. It was odd to see the usually confident man so indecisive. It directly contradicted most people’s beliefs that Gilbert was the kind of person to rush into something without even thinking about the consequences, but Lizzie knew better after all these years.

Sure, maybe when he was younger, he was far more headstrong and something as preposterous and _dangerous_ as working for a couple of nobles, _vampire_ nobles at that, would hardly have warranted this kind of deliberation from the man. But those days were over. Sure, maybe he was still just as loud and outgoing as he’d always been, but you didn’t last as long in this business as they had ( _hell,_ they wouldn’t have made it through the war five years previous) without some sort of forethought and self-preservation skills.

“We don’t have to make this decision tonight,” Lizzie says. “But, he said that there have already been six villagers attacked so far in the last two months, so we need to answer soon if we don’t want that number to go up.”

“When was the letter postmarked?”

“One week ago.”

“So then they’ll be due for another attack by the time we get there,” Gilbert sighed.

If they delayed then it would be people’s lives at risk. Gilbert said as much.

“Gilbert, what if this is a trap?” Lizzie said, the idea making her freeze.

Gilbert just laughed, getting some of his usual vigor back after his serious mood.

“Even if it is, c’mon, we can take them, Lizzie. Nothing we haven’t handled before,” Gilbert says. “And besides, we’ve worked with some half-way decent vampires before. Remember Vlad in Romania a few years back? Sure, he was a little off, but hey. Alright guy!”

Erzsébet remembered him well. One of their contacts referred them to him as an expert on local vampirism, and well they weren’t _wrong per se_ , but it was still a surprise they weren’t expecting but it turned out alright in the end. The guy did have a tendency to lean into the vampire stereotype a little hard. Capes, sleeping in a coffin, long bouts of spewing Mary Shelley, the whole thing. Gilbert loved it but Lizzie found the guy rather tedious and it probably would’ve helped if the guy didn’t flirt with her the entire time. Some guys, undead or not, really could not take a hint…

After a little more deliberation and one last glance at the job description, Erzsébet penned a response that night to say they accepted the job, and posted it the next morning. They packed their bags the next day, gathered supplies, and bought tickets for the train departing east that night. 

+++++++++++++++++++++

The pair were able to take the railroad for most of the way thankfully. Once they reached the border of the Russian Empire, they hired a couple horses from a local inn further into the empire towards Minsk.

They rode all through the next couple of days. Thankfully, the brutal chill of winter had not yet gripped their route. Riding through the thick forests did little to put them at ease though. If the letters were to be believed there was something dangerous lurking in these woods, feeding on travelers as well as children. It was enough to put the both of them on high alert at all times, their hands never far from their pistols. Even when they were forced to camp near the road when an inn was too far a ride, they only slept in shifts to make sure at least one of them was awake in case of an attack from either monster or natural creature hiding in the woods – even losing just one horse from something as normal as a wolf attack would slow their pace down considerably.

Finally, after almost three weeks of hard travelling and slowly making their way from village to village trying to locate the area their letter came from, they reached the edges of their destination.

Slowly the forest they were riding through thinned and they saw a small collection of houses on farmland and as they rode closer to what they could tell was a small town. Leaving the dark forests behind them, they rode into the small clump of buildings in search of an inn to stay the night at.

They would make their way up to the imposing castle up on a hill near the town tomorrow, after a hot bath and the first full night’s rest either of them had had in weeks.

Upon arriving at their destination, they passed off their horses to the young man in the stables and entered the establishment in search of renting a pair of rooms.

As they entered, they noticed how crowded the inn was. The downstairs must have doubled as the local pub since there were plenty of tired faces crowded at tables and at a worn-down bar.

The pair walked up to the bartender, who noticed them right away.

“I don’t suppose you two are the hunters the lord and ladies have hired?”

The man’s eyes rested on the pistols at their sides and their supplies warily.

“Yup, and we’re looking for two rooms for the night,” Gilbert said.

“Oh course. Can’t say we have many travelers passing through here, at least not nowadays.”

“Because of the attacks?” Erzsébet prompted.

The man looked around.

“Listen, I’d appreciate it if you two kept your voices down, they’ve had everyone on edge for months now and between you and me. It seems everyone’s at their breaking point,” the man said quietly. “I’m Toris Laurinaitis, by the way. If you have any questions just ask and I can point you in the right direction. Just saying, it might not be the best idea to just be going about bothering random people.”

“Good to know,” Erzsébet said. She looked around the room and Toris was right. Most meeting rooms were usually loud, jovial places. This was a place filled with tension and whispered conversations despite the large number of people filling the place. The faces of the townspeople gathered were gaunt and it probably wasn’t a good idea to poke around asking prying questions.

Alcohol and grievances were usually never a good combination so it was probably best they conduct their business as discreetly and quickly as possible.

Toris gave them their keys and sent them upstairs with the promise of a hot meal and bath soon. They would ask him more questions tomorrow.

Once Erzsébet dropped her supplies off in her room, she went over to Gilbert’s in the room next to her.

“So what do you think of this place?” he asked as she entered. The small room was as sparsely furnished as her own, only consisting of a bed in one corner where Gilbert sat inspecting his pistol, a chair in another, and a wash basin near the door.

“I think I’m starting to understand why a family of vampires would resort to inviting a pair of hunters into their home,” Erzsébet said hesitantly. “If we don’t find who or what is doing this soon, I think the nobles might have a revolt on their hands.”

“Do you think they’re behind the attacks?” Gilbert looked up.

“I definitely haven’t ruled out the possibility.” Lizzie shrugged at the askance look Gilbert gave her. “They’re vampires, Gilbert, I think it would be foolish to trust them at their word.”

“That’s true, but do you really think the villagers would turn on them now, after what? An entire decade of living under the rule of a family of vampires?” Gilbert sat up.

“I think they would do whatever they thought would stop the attacks and the nobles seem like a possible target if Mr. Laurinaitis is right.”

“It seems like we might be dealing with something a lot more complicated than a monster.”

“My thoughts exactly. Let’s just get some sleep.”

With that Lizzie left the room to let Gilbert stew in his thoughts. Lizzie tried not to think about what the next day could bring them.


	3. Chapter 2

Natalya looks out the window from her tower. Even through the gray bleakness of the late autumn afternoon, her vantage point on the hill makes it easy for her to track the progress of their visitors.

The letter was a gambit. One that could cost her her life or worse, the lives of her brother and sister. But it was the only measure that they had left. Someone or some _thing_ was attacking villagers and unless they were able to find whoever was behind it, the villagers would turn on them. Worse still, they could try to turn to the central authorities which would bring far too much inspection on their little town and the _condition_ the Braginkys were afflicted with and the way it was brought about.

But alas, it was a calculated risk. If the local innkeeper and acting liaison between the townsfolk and the Braginskys was right, this pair of hunters were the real deal. Not just some hacks who went about causing more problems and still demanding their coin.

No, these two seemed to have the credentials to back them up. They were known through most channels this side of the Reine and if they couldn’t solve their problems then seemingly no one would.

Natalya turned from the window when she heard a soft knock at her door.

“Come in,” she called.

Katyushka opened the door a crack, giving Natalya a reassuring smile. Her worry must have been apparent.

“It seems our visitors are nearly here. Would you like to come down to greet them?” Katya asked.

Natalya simply nodded and followed her out of her chambers and down the cold hallways of their castle.

Their maids tried their best to keep the place well-lit and clean, but there still always seemed to be a sense of gloom that hung heavy to the walls of the castle. It was as if the murder of their parents cast a miasma over the entire castle and upon the surviving members of the noble Braginsky family.

But Natalya would not think about that today.

What has been done is done, and she would not change her decision even if she had the chance, no matter how much it weighed on her mind.

“Are you sure you will be alright?” Katya linked her arm through Nat’s, trying to pull her out of her mood. “It’s been so long since we’ve had actual visitors.”

She was right, no one outside of the three of them and their staff had visited the castle in the ten years since their parents’ deaths. There were no family visits, and their parents had very few friends in life to speak of to come banging on their doors demanding explanations to their untimely demises.

“It should be a welcome change for you and Aleks,” Natalya said quietly.

Closing off the castle did little to negatively affect her as she was never particularly social, but she knew that her older sister and brother did enjoy the constant flow of people when their parents still ruled, even if it was only solicitors and tutors.

Their parents banned them from going away to school and leaving their remote village, but that did not stop their education. Natalya was not content with staying within these walls as it was all she had ever known and always craved something more, even if it scared her. To see the world, she had only read about in her books on days where she was bed-bound, but would never burden her siblings with that knowledge as she knew she was needed here.

They finally reached the front parlor of the castle where their brother was waiting for them to greet the hunters.

It seemed Natalya was hardly the only one tense about this encounter. Her brother seemed to be lost in concentration based on the intense look in his eyes and crease between his brow. When he noticed they had entered the room, the crease was smoothed out and a soft smile graced his features. He stood immediately to his full, towering height and bent to gently kiss her and Katya on the cheek each.

“Don’t worry, my sisters, all will be well.”

***

After a long morning and afternoon of talking to Toris again and some of the other villagers about the attacks and the noble family, a local villager offered a ride for Lizzie and Gilbert in his cart but would only take them halfway up the hill. They walked the rest of the way, almost too quickly for Lizzie’s liking. If she could put off the inevitable for as long as possible, she would be very content. It was rare she was so nervous about an assignment but something about this one worried her. Based on what the inn keeper told them earlier, this was different from most cases they handled.

When they arrived at the front gate, the large, imposing doors opened before they could even figure out if they were supposed to knock. Standing in the doorway was a pale, older man. Silently he led them into the castle and through the massive and ornate front hallway into a parlor where two figures sat on couches and one towering gentleman stood by the mantle where a fire was burning.

When the pair of hunters entered the room, the trio ceased their quiet conversation and stared at them.

If an outsider were to walk into the room at that very moment, they would have no trouble figuring out who were the nobles and who were the hunters.

The trio were bedecked in attire so fine that Lizzie figured would take at least an entire year of earnings to be able to afford. It was presumably a few seasons out of fashion but still the fine wools, and delicate lacework and embroidery were vibrant signals that this trio never had to face the risk of missing a meal or working for their next paycheck.

Whereas Lizzie and Gilbert’s attire was much simpler. Coarse wool and leather. Long-lasting, easy to move in, and – quite frankly – easier to clean off the blood and whatever other substances might be splattered on them during hunts. 

The silence was tense. Lizzie was sure it wasn’t every day that this family of vampires willingly invited hunters into their home. And if the inn keeper was to be believed, it wasn’t often that really anyone came to visit at all.

“So you must be Miss Erzsébet Héderváry and Mister Gilbert Bielschmidt,” the towering blond man said graciously. His polite smile did not quite reach his eyes. “My name is Lord Aleksandr Braginsky, as I stated in the letter I wrote you. And these are my two sisters, Lady Katyushka Braginsky and Lady Natalya Braginsky.”

The lord gestured to the two women on the couches, drinking tea from possibly the daintiest cups Lizzie had ever seen. The one on the right looked slightly older than the other two and wore a much warmer smile than Lizzie would have expected from a vampire. Her soft eyes put Lizzie at ease.

Then Lizzie looked to the other woman across from her and whatever she was going to say next caught in her throat. It was rare that someone could make Lizzie go speechless. The women she pursued an interest in were usually quite attractive, but she had always assumed the breath-taking qualities of a beautiful woman were simply just exaggerations made by novels.

The intense features of her cheekbones and eyes should have looked harsh and would have on any other person, but left the woman – _vampire_ , Lizzie tried to remind herself – stunning.

Thankfully Gilbert took it upon himself to respond like a normal, polite human being.

“- and this is my partner,” she caught the tail-end of whatever Gilbert had been saying, and simply nodded when she noticed the lord looking to her. “Now it is to our understanding that this is a time sensitive matter and so if it is possible it would help us greatly if you could give us some more information on the attacks.”

Lizzie could tell Gilbert was trying not to directly say that the letter the lord had sent them was irritatingly scant on details.

The days were getting shorter while winter grew closer so it would be best if they could do whatever investigation they could before the sun set as most of the attacks happened in the night.

“There will be time for that later. Please spend the rest of the day exploring the grounds and the surrounding forests. It will help for you to have an understanding of what is going on if you have a lay of the land first,” Lord Braginsky said. “My sister, Lady Katyushka will be happy to give you a tour of the grounds. Then I hope you would be obliged to join us for dinner.”

“We couldn’t impose, we are staying at the inn and would be fine with the food there,” Gilbert tried.

They glanced at each other. Neither were sure they wanted to find out what a dinner with vampires entailed.

“Of course not, please feel free to stay here while you do your investigations. It’s the least we can offer,” the lord said smiling.

She trusted absolutely nothing about this family, but it wouldn’t be wise to let them know too much about their suspicions. It was likely neither of them would get much sleep staying here but it would offer a closer look at their movements and to learn more about them and the town’s history. It wouldn’t be wise to immediately trust them but it also would be foolish to assume that the vampires were the culprits behind the attacks without a proper observation.

Gilbert tried to argue again but Lizzie cut him off.

“We would be delighted,” she said. At this the younger sister turned her face slightly to regard Lizzie, and she was once again hit with that shock of electricity when their eyes met. The frost blue of the other woman’s eyes should have washed out her already pale features and almost-white hair but instead, instead they seemed to glow as she seemed to size Lizzie up.

Perhaps this was some power that vampires had. She had heard tales of vampires being able to control minds but was never able to find even a shred of evidence supporting the ability’s existence.

Lizzie generally found her hunches to have credibility, and something told her that this sister was the one that might have more answers.

The lord seemed much more delighted in this turn of events and some of the tension fled from the room as he became a bit more jovial.

“Fantastic! Then you will stay here. I will send one of the footmen to retrieve your things from the inn, and Katya will give you a tour of the lands,” the lord announced, clapping his hands once as if everything was settled and good. If he could act as if this was nothing more than a simple social gathering and not a murder investigation then Lizzie would try to pretend to lighten the mood as well.

“Thank you! Lady Katyushka, would you mind showing us around?” Lizzie said brightly. Lady Katyushka stood up and brushed off her skirts, adjusting them.

“It would be my pleasure,” the other woman returned Lizzie’s smile.

Lizzie could still feel the heavy gaze of Lady Katyushka’s sister on her.

“Would you like to accompany us, Lady Natalya?”

Lizzie turned to the other woman and found that she had not moved and only sipped her tea.

“No, thank you. There are some things I need to discuss with my brother,” Lady Natalya intoned. She had the kind of voice that could command a room with only a whisper and Lizzie found herself hanging onto every word.

Well. She was not going to push the matter.

The hunter offered the other woman her arm to hold and with that Gilbert, Lizzie, and Lady Katyushka left the room. 

*******

“So those two are to be our saviors?” Natalya said in between sips from her tea. She listened to the three pairs of footsteps grow fainter as they walked through the echoing halls. Then slid her gaze over to her brother still standing by the large, ornate mantle above the fireplace.

There was a furrow in his brow Natalya recognized from staring at herself in the mirror, worried about what the future would hold for them. While she loved her elder sister dearly, her and Aleksandr had always shared more similarities in their general continence. He had always been her main confidante in life, and now in death as well. He never judged her for the extreme measures she took at times and had a much stronger stomach for their new lives.

“What troubles you, brother?” Natalya tried again.

“I’m sure they will be enough,” Aleksandr sighed and took a seat in the spot Katya vacated a minute before across from Natalya. He poured himself a cup of tea and continued. “From the tales of those two, I was half expecting a pair larger than life itself. But instead they seem so _human_.”

Natalya made a noise of agreement. Her expectations were not nearly as high as her sister’s or brother’s but despite the lack of fanfare of their arrival, there was something about the two that put Natalya on edge. They would have to be careful around the hunters. They were not responsible for the attacks on the villagers but the hunters may not be easily persuaded to see reason if they learned of how they became vampires in the first place.

“Regardless, are you sure it was a good idea to put Katya in the trust of those two?”

“Oh, I would not worry about Katya, she can more than handle herself,” Aleks said placatingly, laughing a little bit. He looked more relieved but still. She knew neither of them would be able to relax until this was all settled.

“Aleks, are you sure. It’s already been so long since we’ve properly fed,” Natalya reminded him. “Her strength will not be as it has been. None of ours will.”

If they had caught the monster terrorizing the town sooner, they probably would have been able to take it down themselves but it has been months and with the spreading rumors, there have been fewer passing travelers to feast on, so it had also been a while since they had a proper meal. Human food and animal blood were enough to sustain them but it was not an equivalent substitute and kept them at limited power.

“Don’t worry, Nat. I don’t think our hunters will try anything too rash and besides, Katya has always been the best with dealing with people,” Aleks just smiled at her.

He was right. There was a reason why she was usually the one that interacted with the villagers. Aleksandr’s size and Nat’s generally dark mood tended to put people off them, even in life. People that still remembered their parents’ tempers were always worried that it might be an inherited trait. It helped immensely with keeping outsiders away though, even if it put up a wall between the siblings and the villagers. They tried their hardest to break it down after their parents’ deaths, but unfortunately, the recent attacks have been destroying any progress made.

“I just hope you’re right about that,” Nat hedged.

“And anyway, I saw how Miss Héderváry was looking at you before. I don’t think we have to worry about her giving you too much trouble,” Aleksandr winked at her.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you are talking about,” Natalya said hesitantly. The woman did little more than stare at her for most of the conversation as if she’d never seen a vampire before. Her pointed ears and fangs would understandably throw off an unseasoned person, but for a hunter like her they should have not been a novel thing. That must be what Aleksandr was talking about.

“I’m just saying, my dear sister, I think we would all like to get along.”

***

Erzsébet was in awe of the vastness of the Braginsky’s estate. It was rare that they were hired to investigate aristocratic estates as they were generally a rather private bunch, so as they explored the sprawling alcoves and outer buildings, she remained surprised to come across every new corner. 

Lady Katyushka was playing the part of the perfect host. She answered all of their questions, gave sweet anecdotes of their time here as children, and kept the mood as light as she could. But every once in a while, they stumbled upon a subject the lady tried her best to breeze over, Katya’s grip tightened ever so slightly on Lizzie’s arm when they mentioned a subject that might have a darker past than she let on.

They walked through carefully kept hedges and an impressive tile patio with large glass doors leading into what would have been a beautiful ballroom at the back of the castle.

“My mother loved to hold balls here when we were very young. They were probably when she was happiest,” Lady Katyushka smiled tightly.

Eventually as they drew towards the edge of the property and the forest. At the base of the hill on the edge of the forest there was a plot of land lined with crumbling headstones and small building in obvious disrepair. The stained-glass windows were broken and the grass and vines around it were overgrown, as if no one had entered it in years. On the front door there was a large, gilded cross. This must be a mausoleum.

Lizzie tried to draw closer to it, but Lady Katyushka held her back with surprising strength.

“Please, I do not wish to go over there,” Lady Katyushka said quietly. “That is the place our parents are kept. Alongside a least five generations of the Braginsky family. That was where we-“

Lizzie looked to her companion. The woman had grown even paler – if that was even possible. Then she looked to Gilbert who had been hanging back behind the two, taking in their surroundings and making notes in his journal. When they came back tonight later, they would have to try and take a look inside.

“I’m sorry. It can just be hard to think about,” Lady Katyushka said vaguely. She started to tear up and immediately Lizzie reached into her pocket for a handkerchief to give to the lady.

Lizzie was not sure if Lady Katyushka was referring to her parent’s death or her own but she doubted it was the latter. Their talk earlier that day with Toris shed more light on the noble family and their connection with the village. Most importantly the reign of terror that the former lord and lady brought upon them. There did not seem to be much sympathy for their quick deaths and whisperings of assassination did not seem to be unfounded, though no one in town wanted to say any names.

While the townspeople did not seem to be thrilled with the current predicament, the new lord and ladies’ vampirism seemed to be a step up, which told Lizzie more than she needed to know. Kinder vampires were not unheard of, her and Gilbert even knew a few in their travels during and after the war, like their friend in Romania.

There were some who refused to have a diet of human blood and instead subsisted on animals, even at the risk of their health, but these were far and few between. Vampirism was a loss of humanity and with it usually came a descent into violence and cruelty, which made her and Gilbert’s job imperative.

The sunlight was quickly fading as the trio ended their tour of the grounds. Lady Katyushka left Lizzie and Gilbert after showing them to their rooms with an excuse about changing for dinner.

Talking and concocting a plan of attack could wait, dinner came first. Lizzie and Gilbert went to their separate rooms to get ready for dinner as well.

Lizzie changed from her work pants and gear into the best dress she owned, probably not even close to being anywhere near as expensive or fine as the dresses the Braginsky sisters wore, but it would have to do, she supposed.

After re-pinning her hair, she checked the tall clock in her room.

Almost eight o’clock.

Begrudgingly, she made her way out of her room and met Gilbert in the hall.

“Please tell me you’re still armed,” Gilbert whispered to her. Lizzie slipped her hand into a hole in the seam of her skirts, where a pocket would usually be. Strapped to her thigh was her trusty silver dagger that never left her. Especially not while dining with _vampires_.

“Still not trust our hosts?” Lizzie said lightly.

“Not in a million years,” Gilbert grumbled.

“But they’re so cute, don’t you think?” Lizzie gave him a wink.

Gilbert choked on whatever he was going to say next. Lizzie only laughed when she saw that her companion’s cheeks were tinged a light pink.

“Lizzie, they’re _vampires_.”

“Yeah? Doesn’t mean I can’t _look_ ,” Lizzie joked. She forced herself to laugh lightly, but there was a brief tightening in her chest. The fact of the matter though was that their hosts were nothing what she had expected them to be.

Usually the vampires they encountered where, well, antisocial to put it nicely. Mangy with bloodstains and a wild look in their eye which gave no illusion that these were not real humans. Fangs and their pointed ears could be hidden, but those eyes, the raw rage and bloodlust made this job more black and white than she originally would’ve expected. Vampires are bad. They feed off of people and kill. Simple.

The Braginsky family was none of that.

First off. They were every bit the poised and gracious nobles that they no doubt were while still alive. While their clothes may have been a bit outdated, they were clean and well-kept. A sign that there were still servants working for them – _human_ servants. Which only spoke to their restraint and a least somewhat amicable relationship with the villagers. Something, while not _completely_ unheard of, definitely rare with vampires.

And quite frankly, the kindness she saw in the eldest sibling, took Lizzie by surprise. She was animated and tried to make her and Gilbert feel at ease. A noble challenge given their circumstances. A natural peace-maker if Lizzie read her correctly, though she wasn’t surprised given her two rather intense younger siblings.

Secondly, they were far younger than she was expected, a fact which made her burning curiosity about them ever stronger. Usually vampires were grown adults when they turned, as generally children couldn’t withstand the process or vampires couldn’t be bothered to deal with someone so young and inexperienced, but Natalya couldn’t have been more than a teenager when she was turned.

Contrary to popular belief, vampires do age, just much more slowly than normal humans. If the youngest truly was turned around that age, and with ten years passing since their turning, she would have to be around the same age as Lizzie, despite her looking a bit younger. Their intermittent feeding habits would account for any aging after only ten years at all.

And if they were turned so young and there were no other known vampires in the area, how did they turn? And what happened to their parents? Why were they not turned as well?

And lastly, she knew that there were stories about the beauty of vampires. Both in the sort of books that one could buy for a penny with lurid stories contained within, and priceless old recounts with books bound in crumbling leather. Stories of men falling in love (or rather, lust) with a beautiful woman only to be drained of his blood the next morning or the like.

Lizzie always took them as just some metaphor to blame women for having children outside marriage or to paint them as harlots and sinful. But dear god, she could not deny that the youngest Braginsky took her breath away the second she laid eyes on her. She obviously wasn’t the first beautiful woman Lizzie had encountered. Certainly not, and oh were some very lovely women eager to show their thanks for her service in the war, but no.

This was not that.

From the moment they locked eyes, it was something far more. Something that clutched Lizzie’s heart and refused to let go. She couldn’t decide if she wanted this job to be over as soon as humanly possible so she could leave this place – and that woman – and never look back. Or worse, for this to extend, for a million for chances to catch another glance at this beautiful and mysterious, and if Lizzie was correct brilliant, woman – no, _vampire_. Because quite frankly there was a part of her that was eager to be caught under her spell. But no, there were lives on the line her and she’s here to do a _job_. 

This was all too much to be worrying about right now. Lizzie pushed these thoughts to the side as she accompanied Gilbert into a large dining room where the three siblings already sat.

****

Dinner went well Gilbert thought.

Well, it went okay.

It could’ve been worse is what he’s trying to say.

The youngest Braginsky sat sullenly, speaking little and often only to make a correction. Lizzie’s tongue seemed to be tied in knots whenever the other girl was around – a new development that he was excited to both tease her endlessly about and watch carefully. It wouldn’t be the first time he had to deal with the fallout of one of her infamous heartbreaks, but this one could be dangerous for the both of them.

Lady Katyushka, as she encouraged them to call her, was kind and affable as always. Gilbert had to commend her for her attempts to lighten the mood as much as was possible at a dinner with vampires and hunters.

Which brings him to the present. Standing in a cozy parlor with a small glass of fine brandy? Whisky? Vodka? Who knows. Some sort of alcohol that Lord Braginsky poured for him after dinner when they left the ladies to play card games. And of course, to the lord himself seated in the armchair across from him.

Gilbert couldn’t tell if his nerves were a result of standing alone in a room with a vampire that towered over him or something less rational. But all he knew was that he wanted to down whatever was in his glass, but that probably would’ve been rude.

“So, Mr. Gilbert. I hope your stay so far has been going well,” the other man broke the tense silence.

Gilbert was at quite a loss as what to say. What the hell do you even begin in a situation like theirs? That’s like being stuck in the middle of a hurricane and your companion turning to you and saying: “Interesting weather we’re having isn’t it?”

The other man was looking for an answer.

“Uh, yeah. It’s a nice place you’ve got here,” Gilbert flinched a little at that god-awful response. 

_Wow, Gilbert. Brilliant response._

“Sorry, small talk really isn’t my strong suit,” the other man said the words that were threatening to pour out of Gilbert’s mouth. “Katya seems to be able to chatter for hours, just this thing or that. Not in a bad way mind you. It seems to put people at ease…”

The lord trailed off looking awkward.

“So, I’m assuming she’s usually the one that talks to the villagers?” Gilbert tried. Maybe this would relieve some of the tension and actually get him some information out of this awkward affair.

“Definitely,” Lord Aleksandr laughed lightly. “Unless there’s something a lord needs to attend to, but no, it’s mostly Katyushka.”

“When she was showing us the castle, she seemed to have a story about every single nook and cranny in this place. It was impressive.”

The other man smiled gently at this. Everything about this man seemed to be like that. Hesitant. As if speaking too loudly or being too expressive would break something. It was like that at dinner, even the way he ate was calculated, precise. As if one extra noise or move of his knife would bring the world crashing down around him.

“Do you ever go down into the village?” Gilbert asked after a moment of companionable silence.

“Rarely, it can be…overwhelming.”

Gilbert knitted his brow. Lord Aleksandr seemed to understand what he meant to say.

“We have very few people come into the castle now, and after so many years of just me, Katya, and Nat. Going down there. With so many people, it’s just a lot sometimes,” Aleksandr took a sip of his drink and looked to the fire burning in the fireplace in front of them.

“Were there a lot of people here before?” Gilbert asked. “Did your parents have many visitors?”

At the mention of their parents, Aleksandr immediately tensed. Any ease there was before completely shuttered away and Gilbert missed it like air gone from a room.

“No. My parents did not have many visitors,” Aleksandr drained the rest of his glass and stood up.

Gilbert scrambled to stand up as well.

“I think I will retire for the evening. Have a good night, Mr. Beilschmidt.”

Lord Braginsky barely met his gaze as he said this and quickly left the room.

He watched the door the other man left through.

They needed to find out more about their parents and the nature of their turning. From the stories the villagers told this didn’t seem to be simple vampire attacks from an impeding rival, or any other night-beast they’d encountered. If it were a werewolf, the attacks would occur according to the moon cycle but they didn’t seem to follow that trend. And the number of children taken each month. Three. It was a number common in the supernatural, but it along with the other factors didn’t point to anything obvious.

He needed to review his journals and notes; hopefully Lizzie was able to get more information from the ladies.

He downed the rest of his drink, savoring the burn that went with it, and left to return to his room.

++++++++++++++

Lady Katyushka had herded Lady Natalya and Erzsébet into a separate parlor across the hall from the one Gilbert and the lord retired to after dinner. They took up a game of cards to try and break some of the tension with a strained attempt at some chit chat. The weight of the dagger strapped to Lizzie’s thigh never left her mind though.

Scarcely even a half hour passed when loud footsteps stomped down the hall interrupting Lady Katyushka’s story involving a ball of twine, a cat, and a tree. The lady walked over to the doorway and peaked her head out the door to the hall.

“Oh dear. Sorry to leave you two. I’ll be, uh, back.”

And with that. It was just her and Lady Natalya. 

Well this was going to go fantastically.

It seemed her initial impression of the other woman was correct. She was as pretty as she was quiet. The silence didn’t seem to faze her though as she continued to deal another hand of cards without her sister.

Lizzie searched her mind for literally anything to say to the other woman. What did noble ladies do with all their free time?

“Do you play any instruments?” she ventured.

“No.”

“Do you draw or paint?”

“Not well.”

“How about gardening?”

“That’s more Katya’s realm of interest.”

“So, what do you like to do in your spare time?” Lizzie desperately hoped Gilbert was having a better time than she was tonight.

Lady Natalya gave her guarded look then replied.

“I like to read.”

Okay, that she could work with. She wasn’t the biggest reader herself as she was just too busy, but she figured the other woman quite literally had all the time in the world.

“Oh, um, what kinds of books do you like to read?”

“All kinds.”

_Damnit. This woman was going to kill her one way or the other._

Lizzie looked up from her cards to see the smallest grin on the other woman’s face. It was just a barest upturn of her mouth. So slight most would hardly notice it was there. But Lizzie was a naturally very observant person.

_Lady Natalya was teasing her._ The very thought was almost enough to bring heat to her cheeks.

“Really? _All kinds_? That’s quite impressive,” she teased.

“I have quite a bit of time on my hands.”

“And an extensive library? I’m sure you have to in a place like this,” Lizzie said. She wasn’t quite sure where this conversation was going, but maybe it’d find its way eventually.

“Quite.”

“With _all kinds_ of books?”

Natalya just hummed, fiddling with her cards. The woman had won almost every single hand of cards so far. It seemed the lady was good at taking calculated risks, and lucky for her Lizzie was as well.

“The natural sciences?” Lizzie asked.

Lady Natalya nodded.

“The supernatural?”

“A specialty of mine.”

 _That was better._ Something in Lizzie wanted to keep this woman talking a much as possible. Whether it was a desire for more information about her and her family, or simply because she wanted to hear the other woman’s soft voice, she wasn’t sure.

“Religious texts?”

“Some.”

“Histories?”

“Quite a few.”

“Local history?”

“Of course.”

“Novels?”

“From the more popular authors.”

“Romances?”

With that the other woman’s eyes opened just a fraction, biting her lip. Lizzie would’ve bet anything that if the woman was capable of it, she’d be blushing.

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I wasn’t, only looking for recommendations,” Lizzie tried to pull her most innocent face. Teasing this woman felt like playing with fire, but oh, was it worth it.

Lady Natalya cleared her throat and shifted in her chair, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, which had come undone from her neat updo.

“Perhaps my sister could help you,” Lady Natalya said stiffly.

“Oh, but I was looking for a recommendation from you,” Lizzie said purred. “If you spend all your time with books, I’m sure you must have some.”

“Miss Héderváry, if you are trying to poke fun at me, I must ask you to stop,” Natalya snapped suddenly.

Lizzie softened immediately; a pang of regret shot through her. It seemed she’d hit a sore spot. She put her card down and reached over to put her hand on the other woman’s.

Immediately the coldness of her skin sent a shock up her arm.

“I must apologize, that was not my intention,” Lizzie said.

But the other woman did not seem to be listening. She only stared at their hands.

Lizzie quickly pulled her hand away, worried that she had offended the other woman further.

“Well, anyway. That being said, is there any chance I could use your library tomorrow? There may be some very important information in there,” Lizzie said clearing her throat.

This seems to break Lady Natalya from her stupor.

“Oh, yes. Of course,” she said faintly.

With that Lizzie stood up and wished her companion goodnight. She strode out of the room, definitely not running from the awkwardness from a few minutes ago. Oh no. Of course not. Just very excited to speak to Gilbert.

She walked briskly through the halls in the direction of their rooms, taking the stairs two at a time. By the time she had a hand on the doorknob of Gilbert’s room, she was panting slightly. This castle really was a labyrinth of rooms and endless corridors.

Before she could even open the door, it swung open and she was face to face with a rather perplexed Gilbert.

“We have to talk,” he said, rather more serious than usual. “C’mon.”

With that he tugged her into the room and closed his door shut firmly behind.

Lizzie took a seat at one of the chairs tucked near the fireplace of the room and faced a pacing Gilbert, his face in deep concentration. Lizzie looked beside her and noticed his journals strewn across the small writing desk in the corner of his room.

She obviously wasn’t the only one that had an illuminating evening.

“So, you’re obviously thinking about something, right? Let’s hear it,” Lizzie prompted.

“It’s the timing of these things that are getting me,” Gilbert started. “I was checking over the records I was keeping of when the attacks were.”

“They’re monthly.”

“Yup, at first I thought this might actually be a werewolf,” Gilbert started.

“The first round of attacks was around a full moon. One before, one during, and one after,” Lizzie said. “I thought the same thing as well.”

“But the more recent ones are not, but they’re always within the same three days. The last three days of the month So, it follows a calendar cycle not the moon cycle. What sort of creature does that?”

“Last day of the month specifically?”

“Yeah.”

“None that I can think of,” Lizzie replied. This was starting to look bleaker than they expected. “Lady Natalya said I can have access to her library though tomorrow. Perhaps there’s something on a local creature in there somewhere that we just haven’t heard of.”

“Maybe…” Gilbert trailed off.

It was odd to see Gilbert so subdued. The normally cheerful usually was filled with bravado and boundless energy, always ready to approach things head first. Lizzie, if she was being quite frank, was usually the brains of their operations but this one was really stumping her. This case was proving to be quite different from all of their other ones, in more ways than just their vampire clients.

“I think we need to find more out about their family,” Gilbert said quietly, as if just mentioning them would alarm their hosts. “Lord Aleksandr seemed hesitant to mention anything about them after dinner.”

“Definitely. I will see if I can get anything out of them tomorrow,” Lizzie said. “The villagers said they were not exactly pleasant people but this. This seems different. There has to be something we’re missing. Something no one knows about.”

Gilbert glances up at the large clock on the far side of the room.

It was barely past eleven.

“If my calculations are correct Lizzie, there should be another attack tomorrow,” Gilbert said grimly.

“We have to act fast then,” Lizzie nodded. “We should scout out the forest for a couple hours tonight. See if we see anything unusual occurring.”

Lizzie got up and returned to her room to gear up for the night ahead.

There was something dark brewing here and she needed to have her head as clear as possible, lest she lose it. She pushed aside any thoughts of the younger Braginsky sister, no matter how much her mind seemed to cycle back to the electricity of her touch and how she made Lizzie’s heart soar at only a glance. There was no time and she couldn’t let her feelings cloud her judgement like that.


	4. Chapter 3

_Warm. It was so warm._

That was all Natalya could think as she stalked down the dark corridors of her family’s castle. Despite her frozen veins and heart, there was a ghost of what it would have felt like if she were alive.

It was as if she could feel the blood in her veins pounding, a blush in her cheeks, and her heart racing. All from a single touch. A sorry hand over hers to show an apology, for any normal person that would be as common-day as any other simple occurrence, but no. Perhaps she’d been reading too many romances. Though quite frankly there were only so many books on dark magic and river ecosystems one could read without needing something lighter.

Natalya could hardly remember the last time anyone outside of her family had laid a hand on her – perhaps some of the doctors, but their cold, impersonal touches hardly counted.

No this, on the trails of the other woman making jest, teasing her. She barely held her composure. This beautiful stranger, trying to be light with her. _Friendly._ And oh course she had to go and ruin it.

Natalya never had friends beyond her siblings growing up and even then, with the specter of death constantly hanging over her, it was near impossible to find a truly innocent and carefree moment. People were always fussing and worrying, never mind a chance to go away to school and meet other girls her age or even just a trip down into the village.

It was strange.

But good.

Funny how she had to die in order to feel alive.

To feel anything really.

But she couldn’t focus on this now, she had to clear her head. Villagers dying meant angry villagers. And angry villagers meant they would eventually turn on her and her siblings. Which meant the ones she loved would be in danger yet again. And that was unacceptable.

She’d lived this long without connections to people outside of her family and that meant she didn’t need to get hung up on them now.

Right?

Thankfully she made it to the library where she knew her siblings would gather before the turbulent emotions could swell up within her again. It was one of the few rooms in the house that their parents would ever bother entering, so it became a safe place for them, even whether they no longer had to escape their looming presence.

Aleksandr looked upset.

He and Katya were sitting on a couch on the far side of the room. Her hand in his.

She would always be jealous of how easily giving comfort was to her sister. Always so quick to say a kind word or give a tender touch.

“What happened?” Nat said, as direct as always.

“Nothing,” her brother exhaled. “Mr. Beilschmidt and I spoke, he started asking questions.”

“Miss Héderváry as well,” Nat said. “We need to keep an eye on them.”

“What do we know about them? Do you think we can really trust them to solve this?” Katya asked. Nat knew Katya was worried sick over this since she was close with some of the families whose children had been taken.

“They’re hunters. Ex-soldiers. Highly respected. Came with high recommendations from the local hunters I initially reached out to,” Aleks said. “I have faith that they’ll be able to solve this problem of ours, but I do worry that they may stumble upon things they shouldn’t discover.”

With that Aleks gave Nat a significant look.

Nat’s stomach dropped. There was no way that the pair wouldn’t discover the true nature of their turning. Miss Héderváry and her companion were no regular brutish hunters. They were much cleverer than their colleagues. Usually a hunter would come in lay waste to whatever seemed off, collect their coin, and be on their way; but these two were much more methodical than that. Though Nat supposed for them to receive such high praise, there was no way for them to be simply ordinary.

Katya sighed.

“Perhaps we should tell them,” their older sister said.

Aleksandr started to argue immediately.

“No –“ Katya cut off whatever he was going to say. “Listen. I don’t think this is another vampire. The entire thing feels off and we definitely would have encountered them by now or they would have tried to attack us directly.”

“Well, yes. I suppose then we would no longer have to worry about this,” Nat started.

“I’m glad you see it my way.”

“Because we’ll be dead,” Nat finished, deadpan. Katya instantly deflated. “If these _hunters_ find out I killed our parents then they undoubtedly kill us as well. No matter our reasons, hunters see things in black and white. Good and bad. Things that need to be killed and things that are allowed to stay alive.”

“They seem different, Natalya,” Katya protested. “I’m sure they’ll under-“

“They killed monsters, Katya, and I _became_ a monster that night, Katya,” Nat cut her off.

Katya’s face crumpled. Natalya hated to see her sister upset but needed to remind her exactly what the situation was and what was at stake.

“Don’t say that, Nat,” Aleks said quietly.

“Why not? It’s the truth.”

“Because you did what needed to be done.”

Natalya felt her jaw tighten at that. She knew he was right, but it didn’t feel any better.

Feeding off of humans as a vampire was a simply necessary fact. Feed or perish.

But murder?

It was a step too far outside of the realm of morality for her to truly forgive herself for, no matter how cruel her parents were.

Aleks squeezed his sister’s hand and stood up.

“I think I’ve had enough for one night. I’m going to retire to my rooms,” he said, resigned.

Katyushka and Natalya simply watched him go.

“You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself,” Katya broke the silence.

Natalya said nothing, this wasn’t a new argument.

Katya patted the now vacant spot next to her and Natalya sat down. Gently Katya pulled Nat to her chest, stroking her hair to soothe her.

No matter how much she tried to hide her feelings, Katya had an uncanny ability to tell when Nat’s mind was in turmoil.

“I like Miss Héderváry,” her older sister said simply.

“I think I do too,” Nat said, barely audible. As if saying out loud would bring the weight of the world crashing down on them. As if the very idea that as soon as she admitted she had something she cared about, it would be snatched away from her.

“I think it would be good for you to spend time with her while she’s here.”

_While she’s here._

Reminding her of the truth that there will come a time that she will no longer be here. A brutal reminder that soon Miss Héderváry will leave as soon as this is resolved. It was an idea that, despite only knowing the woman for barely a day, left a dull ache in her chest. 

“Promise me you will?” Katya continued when Natalya said nothing.

“She asked to use the library tomorrow,” Nat murmured against her sister’s chest.

“Well I think it would be a grand idea for you to show her the collection.”

Nat could hear the smile in her sister’s voice. She said nothing at that. Too scared of giving something away, despite the fact that just that simple exchange probably told Katya everything she needed to know.

Nat remained there in Katya’s arms as Katya began to hum a gentle lullaby to her.

It was something Nat vaguely remembered from her childhood. A simple tune one of their nursemaids used to sing them.

Nat was almost lulled to sleep when suddenly a loud crash sounded outside, followed by a piercing wail.

Immediately Nat and Katya shot to the window facing the back of the house.

She heard fast thumping upstairs as Aleks had no doubt heard the noise as well. Moments later he shot into the library, changed out of his dinner clothes and into something simpler, but wide awake.

“Are you two okay?” he said.

“Yes,” Nat said. “The noise came from outside.”

“Were the hunters going out tonight to investigate?” he asked.

Nat only shrugged. She didn’t think to ask.

“Where’s the lantern? We need to go investigate.”

It seemed their night was not yet over.

+++++++++

Gilbert and Lizzie slipped out of the castle under the cover of night, picking through the back gardens as well as they could from the light of the moon and the layout they got from the tour earlier that day. The moon was still full enough that the land around them was cast in a glowing monochrome, but not so full that they would be easily found.

Lighting a lantern would only alert whatever they were hunting of their location, so they moved as quickly and easily as they could in the dark, making their way to the edge of the forest. There was no telling when this creature woke so they were on high alert, hoping to see some sort of movement of it, or signs that it had been in the area.

Lizzie locked eyes with Gilbert and they got their rifles ready in case of attack. While they were certainly worried about running into their monster before they had time to research its weaknesses, being taken out by a natural predator, would be a rather anticlimactic end.

“Ready?” Gilbert said, keeping his voice low and his footsteps light.

Lizzie just nodded in reply.

They slowly moved into the darkness of the forest, giving their eyes time to readjust to the difference in light as the canopy of trees blocked out some of the moon’s glow.

Staying close enough to the forests edge that they could still see the castle grounds, they made a slow circuit around the circumference of the castle.

They could go out again in the day to look more closely for tracks, but for now any movement or sign of the monster would be good enough.

And sure enough, they found it.

As they started to near the far end of the grounds, towards the small graveyard they saw that afternoon, there was a loud crash of branches breaking and a flash of movement in the dark.

Lizzie could hardly make out its shape.

A large, angular black figure was bolting towards them, quicker than Lizzie could track.

Gilbert was faster though as he took aim and fired at the monstrous thing just before it could reach them.

The flash from his rifle firing gave them the briefest glance at its form.

It was draped from head to toe in tattered black fabric, hanging loosely on its frame.

Nothing about its face was human.

Gilbert’s shot seemed to have hit it as it let out the loudest shriek she had ever heard. She had heard stories from other hunters out in western Europe about the _bean sídhe_ and wailing women and covered her ears quickly, worried this one could damage them permanently or worse. She looked to her side and saw Gilbert was doing the same. His gun thrown to the forest floor as the monster darted into the depths of the wood away from them. It was no doubt not used to its prey fighting back.

The two hunters ran back to the forest edge towards the castle just as the three nobles burst out of a back door, lanterns raised high and panicked looks on their faces.

“We saw it,” Lizzie panted. Doubled over, trying to catch her breath. “We saw the monster.”

“Or at least I hope it was the monster, otherwise we have more than one problem on our hands,” Gilbert added, with far more composure than Lizzie thought was fair.

You’d think that the primal rush of fear at something scary trying to kill you would fade with the more hunts you went on, but for Lizzie it always felt like the first time with new monsters. Always that rush of the unknown and shot of adrenaline necessary to fight it.

“Is it gone?” Lord Aleksandr said. He looked concerned, eyes darting, trying to look Gilbert over for injuries.

“It ran into the forest. I don’t think we need to worry about it tonight,” Gilbert responded.

Lizzie took a look at the two sisters as the men talked, Gilbert describing the creature to Lord Aleksandr, both seemingly trying to plan what to do tomorrow. Her eyes locked with Lady Natalya’s, the moonlight cast the other woman into an eerie glow, her already pale skin and hair, made almost luminescent.

Lady Katyushka interrupted her reverie though.

“Let’s go inside, yes? It’s quite cold out,” she then turned around and headed back inside ahead of them. She and Lady Natalya followed behind side by side, with the men lagging.

“Are you alright?” Lady Natalya asked quietly.

Lizzie startled for a moment, taking a moment to realize she was addressing her.

“I think the monster is gone for now,” Lizzie said, knitting her brows. “I’ll be better when we learn more about it.”

Lizzie looked to the woman walking beside her and was struck by how close the other women was and how intently Lady Natalya seemed to be inspecting her. Her pale eyes searching her face.

Lizzie could feel herself blush under her gaze.

“Would you like help in the library tomorrow?” Lady Natalya asked.

Lizzie nodded in affirmative, she didn’t quite trust her voice at the moment.

As they walked side by side, every few steps back to the castle, Lizzie could just about feel the brush of the other woman’s skirts against her hunting trousers. The faint touch of what she thought was the other woman’s hand against her own. A nagging thought, wondering what it would feel like if she intertwined her fingers with the other woman’s.

When the small party reached the castle the two groups, vampires and hunters, split ways for the night.

+++++++

Lizzie woke up slowly the next morning. Light barely made its way into the room through large windows. The day was shaping up to be as gloomy as their situation. It was already well into the morning, far later than she would usually awake, what with the drama and chaos the right before and an exhausting last couple of weeks, all on top of not being able to sleep until late into the morning.

She wasn’t sure what kept her up.

Whether it was the chilling fear she felt when she faced the monster with Gilbert and knowing that she would face it again soon.

Or, her longing for her alluring host, no doubt already roaming the castle getting on with her day. And what those feelings meant.

Lizzie rarely strayed from her ambitions. She was generally the type where if there was a job that needed to be done, it would be her single-minded mission until it was completed, so this _distraction_ – really that’s all her feelings were, weren’t they? – was not welcome.

Her heart sped up though remembering that Lady Natalya offered to show her the library. Surely it was fine to spend more time with the woman if it meant it would bring them that much closer to finding the monster. Right?

Lizzie climbed out of bed and got dressed.

Off she went down the long corridors, more easily finding her way around in the day in search of breakfast. She found it and most of her other companions seated around a long table in the dining room. Lady Katyushka, Lord Aleksandr, and Gilbert were already seated and eating breakfast as she stumbled into the room in her haste.

A small bar filled with dishes of breakfast food sat off to the side of the room. She quickly filled her plate and sat next to Gilbert. He quirked one eyebrow at her in question, it was rare she was ever up past dawn, a habit she kept from her days in the army.

“I was up late. Had trouble sleeping,” Lizzie said, tucking into her food.

She looked up and Lady Katyushka was looking at her with concern, sipping her cup of tea. That’s when she noticed neither her nor her brother were eating anything.

_Right. Vampires._

She supposed they did not actually have to consume any food if they so choose. The thought itself boggled her mind. She’d never had the opportunity to observe vampire behavior in such close quarters before. The vast majority of the time her only contact with them was on hunts.

Did they even sleep? Did they eat food because they wanted to or did they still need to? If so, why were they down here with them?

She supposed keeping up the habit of sitting at a breakfast table might be comforting reminder of their previous life.

Lizzie quickly finished her meal.

“Does anyone know where Lady Natalya is?” Lizzie asked, cutting off the quiet conversation around her, not listening to a word while she was lost in her thoughts.

Lady Katyushka gave her a small smile, her eyes lighting up. Lizzie could not imagine why; it was as if the question itself was amusing in some way.

“I do believe she is already in the library,” Lord Aleksandr said. He looked at her inquisitively, as if trying to figure something out.

Lizzie thanked them for her meal and left the room.

She made her way back down the halls, trying to find the library she thought she remembered seeing on her tour yesterday.

Lady Natalya was already there. Lizzie tried not too feel to guilty about leaving the other woman all alone, but the woman seemed to be at peace among the books. Though Lizzie supposed maybe this was normal as she had mentioned before that she often read in here.

Lizzie stepped into the room and a squeaky floorboard caught the other woman’s attention, her pale eyes locking with Lizzie’s green ones.

A shiver ran down her spine.

“Good morning Miss Héderváry,” Lady Natalya greeted her.

“Lizzie!” Lizzie’s couldn’t stop the words bursting from her mouth. It seemed to take Lady Natalya by surprise. “Lizzie – you. Call me Lizzie, please. It’s what my friends call me.”

She trailed off as the other woman wore the barest hint of a smile, her face softening from its ordinarily stern expression. Lizzie was slowly suspecting that it might but just be a default expression and not a display of disapproval.

“You consider us friends?” Lady Natalya said softly, a little hesitant and gripping the book in her hands a little tighter.

“I should hope so,” Lizzie answered. “If that’s alright with you, Lady Natalya?”

Lady Natalya’s smile grew larger at that. She ducked her head as if trying to hide her emotion. Why, Lizzie couldn’t hazard a guess, because quite frankly Lizzie would be willing to do anything to see her smile like that at all times.

“What an odd pair of friends we shall make,” the other woman said. “And if we are to be friends, just Natalya is fine.”

Lizzie smiles back, their gazes locked.

Natalya (and _oh did that make Lizzie’s heart flutter a bit._ Natalya.) broke their connection and returned to the stack of books in front of her on the large table in the middle of the room.

“I took some liberties with pulling a few books for you to look at,” she gestured to the large stacks. There had to be dozens of old books there.

Lizzie walked over to join her. Among the titles were encyclopedias on mythical and magical creatures, local histories, biographies, travel logs. A vast assortment of books that could possibly shed light on their situation, but would take far too much time to read on her own. She looked around and finally took stock of the large room around her.

It may not be as large as a ballroom but there had to be a least half a dozen aisles of bookcases and along the walls, filled with thousands and thousands of books. Some of them ancient looking, but many also newer, their binding not even broken.

She was surprised. She didn’t think that the Braginsky’s would have the budget for new books.

Natalya must have noticed her eyeing them and commented.

“Well, my brother figured since we no longer have so much money on food, I could buy as many books as I liked,” she said, the barest huff of laughter escaping her.

Lizzie blinked at her, then realized she was joking. Oh course, she would have such a grim sense of humor. Her smile grew at the realization and the other woman looked satisfied.

“Well I suppose I ought to get to work, there is much here to start with. Thank you,” Lizzie said, sitting down at the table in one of the many wooden chairs.

She expected her hostess to leave her, but instead she took a deep breath and took a seat beside Lizzie.

“Actually, I thought it might go much faster if I helped,” the blonde began. Close enough to Lizzie that she could smell her faint perfume.

Lizzie was surprised by this. She figured Natalya would want to spend her time alone, doing whatever she got up to. Instead…

“Okay,” Lizzie said brightly. “I’d love for your help!”

“I just –“ Natalya looked away again, her shoulders hunched. Lizzie was slowly realizing this was a sign the other woman was embarrassed for whatever reason. It was really fascinating figuring out the mannerisms of the other woman.

How human mannerisms like blushing or holding one’s breath may not technically be possible or needed, but there was an innate compulsion it seems like to replicate these mannerisms even in death. It made the other woman seem just, so. _Human_. Were her initial preconceptions so incredibly wrong?

Lizzie didn’t love the sinking feeling that came with that realization.

“I know this library better than anyone else still living and I think there might be information useful to your case in these books, and if you didn’t mind I was thinking I could help look them over for you or point you in the right direction,” Natalya said quickly, her hands resting on the table unconsciously clenching as if there was a single chance Lizzie would ever turn her down. Lizzie didn’t think she’d ever heard the other woman say so much at once, the entire time they were here.

Lizzie looked at the other woman and smiled gently.

“I’d love your help,” Lizzie said softly.

She laid one of her hands on Natalya’s and they both froze at the contact, just like last night. Lizzie knew she should pull away, but she was nearly aching to be closer to this woman. Every part of the rational side of her brain told her to pull her hand away, that this was rude, and overly familiar. That the beautiful woman before her would be nothing but trouble. But. Absently she stroked her thumb across the other woman’s knuckles, wondering how incredibly soft her hands were. Chill to the touch but softer than anything Lizzie had ever touched. The tips her fingers exploring the divots between each knuckle, neither of them breathing.

Natalya gently flipped her hand over, inviting Lizzie in. Lizzie skimmed the pads of her fingers over the other woman’s palm before intertwining their fingers. She stared at the way they fit together so perfectly. Natalya’s slender fingers slotted between her rough, scarred ones.

Despite anything Lizzie had ever done this somehow may have been the most intimately she had ever touched another person. She was breathless with it.

She could feel the weight of Natalya’s gaze on her and she steeled herself to meet it.

Natalya’s eyes were wide and questioning, showing her something akin to vulnerability. It was clear Lizzie was not the only one moved by this unexpected encounter.

“Well,” Natalya was the first one to break eye contact and reached for a nearby book, her face went back to its usual stony facade. Her hand was still clasped in Lizzies and realizing this made Lizzie’s heart warm. “We had better get started.”

“Of course,” Lizzie cleared her throat and reached for a book for herself. This tender feeling was more than friendship and that scared her, but Lizzie let herself enjoy it anyway.

They made decent progress through the books. Natalya occasionally went to the shelves to find more. They worked well into the afternoon, Lady Katyushka coming by at some point to bring a plate of sandwiches and leaving them to their work.

Lizzie scrounged for anything that sounded like their case. But whenever they came across something that might sound right, there was always a detail that didn’t make sense. Natalya had a near encyclopedic knowledge of most of the local history and supernatural so they were able to quickly cross off possible suspects, until they came across one account from centuries before.

Natalya had slid the book she was reading quietly over to Lizzie and tapped an important passage without a word.

The author spoke of a monster quite similar to theirs. Attacking three nights a month all on the same dates. The appearance was the same. Same types of victims. Everything.

Lizzie read more, trying to figure out the cause or how they stopped it.

“It’s a wraith,” Natalya said quietly.

Lizzie’s blood froze as she heard Natalya and read through the passage.

A creature born from vengeance, betrayal, murder. The only one who could stop it was the one who killed it.

Lizzie turned to Natalya for an explanation, no matter how much she dreaded it, but the other woman refused the look at her. Her fists were clenched on the table and her face like it was etched in stone.

“There are things we need to discuss,” Natalya said standing up from her chair. “I will grab the others.”

She walked briskly out of the room, her back ramrod straight.

Lizzie felt like she had been punched in the stomach. Any warmth from before, an afternoon of companionable silence, quiet conversation, and lingering touches was gone.

There had to be a perfectly reasonable explanation for this, Lizzie refused to let her mind run wild. She owed her hosts that much.

+++++

Gilbert and Aleksandr spent their afternoon searching the grounds and the edges of the forest for any sign of the monster.

It was easier than expected.

They spent most of the day trying to retrace the prints of the monster they encountered the night before, thankfully the weather had been fair so the tracks still held. Their origin did not seem to come from too far into the forest, for there was only one set going deep into it from last night when it fled. Instead most of them were found around the castle and some older ones leading into the village.

They caught part of a trail that looked promising as they started to round the castle, backtracking from last night.

They worked well together, the taller man was quiet but observant, and Gilbert talked more than enough for the both of them away so there was hardly a lapse in conversation. He spoke constantly of the things he and Erzsébet had seen on their travels, the battles they fought and the monsters they hunted – side-stepping any stories involving any vampires of course. 

And! He laughed at Gilbert’s jokes, no matter how stupid Lizzie always said they were.

Then Gilbert started to talk about his brother back home and his inn.

“I’d do anything for him, you know?” Gilbert said. “I can’t imagine my life without him. I mean sure, he’s a total stick in the mud but still.”

They were following the trail and soon were coming to the edge of the forest. The graveyard was coming into view.

“Sometimes we would be willing to do anything for those we love,” Aleksandr responded. He kept glancing nervously at the graveyard. “ _Anything._ ”

They walked along the trail leading them to the entrance.

Before Gilbert could respond they noticed that the large door covering the crypt at the far end of the graveyard was off its hinges. As if something immensely strong had broken free.

Gilbert had a sinking feeling that they were close to uncovering what was behind the attacks as he hadn’t noticed that yesterday. He strode forward, pulling out the pistol at his side, in case the thing was hiding in there with Aleksandr behind him.

They moved the door completely to the side together, leaning it on the ivy-covered outside of the building. It looked like no one had tended to the small building in ages.

Gilbert stepped inside and squinted waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Aleksandr stepped in after him and they looked around. It did not take long to figure out what was wrong. Four out of five of the stone caskets within were open.

Three were obviously from the siblings, but Aleksandr pointed to one of the pairs of caskets towards the front of the room.

“That is where my mother was laid to rest,” his voice unsteady.

Gilbert rushed over only to find it empty. He looked back at Aleksandr distressed.

“We need to leave immediately,” Gilbert said.

Aleksandr only nodded his head, looking stricken, and stumbled back outside. Gilbert joined him closely behind.

“She was dead. I saw her body. She was dead.”

Gilbert found Aleksandr bent over, clutching his knees as he repeated that to himself. His breath was coming quickly. If vampires were capable of panic, it seemed like Aleksandr definitely was.

Gilbert approached him slowly, resting a hand on his back. Trying his best to sooth the man, so he could explain what was going on.

“Aleksandr, it’s going to be okay,” Gilbert said.

“No,” Aleksandr seemed frantic, he reached up and gripped Gilbert’s shoulders so they were face to face. “Natalya did not have her turned. Something went wrong.”

Gilbert’s stomach dropped. It seems like him and Lizzie would finally find out what was going on.

“What- “ Gilbert started.

At that moment, they finally noticed Natalya coming towards them, her face grim. She stopped just before the entrance into the graveyard.

“We all need to talk.”


	5. Chapter 4

The sun was setting.

That was always the most ominous time of the day wasn’t it?

It was as if people just innately knew that was when the monsters came out. That was when the long shows turned into monsters with their sharp corners reaching for you. Just outside the glow of a candle.

Every society around the world had their monsters in the dark. It was an innate fear, that fear of the dark. Of the unknown. Of what was creeping just along the edges of your vision, not quite there, but you couldn’t say for sure that it _wasn’t._

That was the crux of it. The entire point of Lizzie’s career. To take those monsters and destroy them or else countless lives would be trapped in their destruction. Because sometimes there really was a monster under the bed, and sometimes there really was something hiding just along the edges of the forest, waiting for you to enter it.

That was the monster that was waiting for them tonight.

But before she could tackle that one, they needed to shed some light on the problem in front of them. The unasked questions, she and Gilbert needed to know the answers to before it was too late.

Lizzie paced the library, her mind going in a hundred different directions, she absently reached to her side to make sure her knife was still strapped to the leg of her trousers. Not for the first time, she was extremely glad she always had it on her.

Soon she heard a thundering of footsteps approaching the library.

She couldn’t help but tense.

Natalya entered the library, followed closely behind by Lord Aleksandr and Gilbert. Natalya’s face still wore a stoic expression but the other two men looked very ill at ease.

“Katya said she said she will join us soon,” Natalya said briskly.

The four of them stood there for a moment awkwardly. It was obvious that they had something they urgently needed to discuss. Then they took their seats around the table strewn with open books.

Lizzie took the same seat she used last time, but Natalya took one on the other side of the table next to her brother.

That stung a little.

Gilbert sat beside her, looking nervous, this couldn’t be good.

“We have not been entirely open with you two,” Natalya began.

_That was an understatement._

“When we hired you, we were hoping this wouldn’t be quite so…involved,” Lord Aleksandr cut in. He did not look well.

“I killed our parents,” Natalya said plainly, without emotion. Her eyes were locked on her hands clasped together in front of her. “Ten years ago.”

Lizzie wished she was more shocked. She knew she should be. But as she looked at the pair in front of her. Thought of the stories the villagers talked about. The wraith.

“Why?” Gilbert said the words she wanted to ask. Gilbert’s face was a mask of concentration, she knew the same thoughts must be circling through his head. Reaching for how all of this fits together.

Lord Aleksandr looked like he wanted to reply but no words came out of his mouth. He only looked at Gilbert and from Gilbert’s expression, something seemed to fit into place.

“It was the only way,” Natalya said in the same quiet monotone, despondent. “Katya was going to be sent away to be married. I was going to die soon. And Aleksandr would have been the only one left to face our parents’ wrath.”

“Our parents were not kind people,” Lord Aleksandr began, from the way Natalya flinched Lizzie could tell that was an understatement. “Katya was reaching an age where she needed to marry and my father found a match to a much older man far away. We were – were always the ones to keep Natalya safe. She was always very sick and we knew if Katya was not here to take care of her, there was no way she would have lasted too much longer.”

“I found our solution in one of the books we have on darker forms of magic,” Natalya said, her knuckles now white with tension. Her voice was strained. “Simply put, I poisoned our dinners one night, but in mine, Aleksandr’s and Katya’s there was a potion that should raise the dead. With that combined with the intent… there was a chance we would come back as vampires.”

She said this all so plainly as if she was just listing off the events of a battle.

“I killed them and now they’re back hurting more people,” her voice broke a little at that. Lizzie could help but feel a pang of sympathy.

“Natalya, you couldn’t have known,” Lord Aleksandr said.

“I knew the risks,” Natalya said sharply. Her shoulders were shaking as if trying not to cry or scream - Lizzie couldn’t tell which.

They were quiet for a moment.

“You knew it was a risk for us to come here, didn’t you? That you could be found out?” Lizzie said trying to keep her voice steady. “Vampirism is not illegal, as long as no one is hurt. But that doesn’t seem to be the case.”

“We’ve never killed anyone we fed on,” Lord Aleksandr tried again.

“I knew the risks,” Natalya repeated again. “It was call you, or more of our villagers die.”

Lizzie tried to make eye contact with Natalya, to try and see what was going through her mind but Natalya stared grimly in place, her face frozen as she stated her facts plainly.

Lizzie’s mind was racing, her emotions pinballing all over the place as she processed this new information. This information that suddenly brought everything over the last few days she’d witnessed into a new light.

Her initial reaction was to flinch.

Revert back into that comfortable hunter persona. That easy view of the world. Good and bad. The mindset that got her through the war and through many hunts.

But she knew that would be the easy option – condemning the siblings for the murders. But it was like trying to view a painting through a pinhole. Incomplete and impossible to give an accurate judgment.

Then her mind supplied her with smaller details. The way that Lady Katyushka and Lord Aleksandr would flinch if one of them spoke too loudly, suddenly. The acrid bitterness in the villagers’ voices whenever the previous lord and lady were brought up and their earnestness in how much they did like the current ones, despite the recent events. Even the most bitter and grieving ones admitted to a respect for the siblings – their fairness and no doubt Lady Katyushka’s kind nature winning them over.

“We’d do anything for the ones we love,” Gilbert whispered next to her. His and Lord Aleksandr’s gazes were locked. Lizzie felt like she was intruding on something intimate.

Lizzie made her decision.

“We need to plan our attack,” she said, clearing her throat. This was the time for action not wallowing about the future of her love life.

Natalya finally looked up as she said that, a question on her face. There was a small crack in her mask, a hint of hope. So small Lizzie could have easily missed it.

Lizzie gave her the smallest smile, barely an upturn of her lips.

_I don’t know. Let’s see how this plays out._

Natalya’s fist loosened slightly to something less painful.

That’s when they heard the scream.

Immediately the four of them shot into action.

_Lady Katyushka._

++++

A shot of fear struck through Natalya. Her sister was in trouble and she needed to save her.

She pushed aside any thoughts of the woman sitting across from her and steeled herself for what she was going to need to do.

All of the books and accounts on wraiths were clear. Wraith come back for retribution, to seek their vengeance against those who wronged them.

That person was Natalya. She couldn’t let her siblings or her new friends be hurt because of her. Because she was not careful enough those ten years ago.

She would need to confront the hollow husk of what her mother once was. Confront the looming shadow of their parents that they’ve been avoiding for the last decade.

It terrified Natalya.

The hunters ran from the room first and her and Aleks followed closely behind. They shouted their attack plan. Only Erzsébet and Gilbert were armed with weapons so they would split off with her and Aleks to look for Katyushka. Despite their supernatural strength, they were still vulnerable.

Her screams had come from below but it was impossible to tell exactly where with the echoing hallways and chambers.

Lizzie looked to her and Natalya nodded back. The hunter withdrew her knife from its sheath and the two of them split from Aleks and Gilbert when they reached the grand staircase leading downstairs. They would search the first floor while the men searched the lower basements.

They took turns darting into rooms looking for any sign of Katyushka.

They were quickly losing light and would be then bathed in only moonlight. Natalya’s vision was alright in the dark due to her supernatural abilities, but Lizzie’s was not, making their search just that much more dangerous as this creature did not seem to need the light to see.

She felt like every point of her body was on high alert looking for any signs. Her senses heightened in panic. She refused to let anyone take her sister away from her.

They heard another scream then and immediately rushed down the halls. They followed the sound to the decrepit ballroom that had gone to ruin over time from disuse at the far end of the house.

It was once full of splendor and shiny floors and decadent decorations, once the height of fashion for its time. Natalya had only seen it once in use during her entire life. When she was very young, her and her siblings had snuck out of their rooms while their parents were hosting a ball and spied on all of the beautiful guests through a hidden grate.

It had been a shining room full of swirling colors as the ladies and gentlemen danced in intricate spirals to soaring orchestra music. For years after Natalya held the memory close to her heart as proof that there was a life outside of this castle. That there were other people to meet and things to see, that these things were not just fairytales in the books she read. That was before their parents’ tempers soured and her health declined, keeping her confined in the castle walls and her siblings on edge.

Any color and splendor there once were in the room was gone now, after years of being locked away to rot.

The wraith and Katya were locked in battle in the center of the room. She looked worse for wear but gripped an ornate sword from the display on the wall near her. She was clumsy with it but it was better than nothing as she tried to block the attacks of the wraith.

The large doors leading into the gardens on the far end of the room were flung open, slamming in the wind from outside. It looked like Katya had been able to break free before she was taken away and off into the night. Moonlight streamed through into the room, the sun completely gone, casting them all in shadows.

“Katya!” Natalya screamed, unable to help herself. The terror on her sister’s face ripped her heart from her chest and she felt like a child again.

Both Katya and the wraith turned to her.

There was an icy chill that went down her back as the monster faced her. She could not see its eyes hidden behind a veil of black gauze but she fixated on the cruel smile spread across its face at finally locking on with its true prey.

The creatures long sharp fingers curled into claws, moving more like a spider’s legs than hands. It was draped in the clothes they buried their mother in, the decaying fabric hanging off her now skeletal frame. It moved jerkily as if propped up by strings, but deadly.

It shot across the room in a blur of black but before it reached her though Lizzie slammed into it, knocking her companion and the monster to the ground. It flailed as it tried to fight from the hunter’s grip, its nails scratching whatever skin it came in contact with, snarling with fury at being denied its prey.

Natalya snapped out of her terror and rushed to Lizzie’s side, reaching for the dagger strapped to the hunter’s thigh. The silver blade felt heavy in her hands.

Gilbert and Aleksandr ran into the room, no doubt called by all the noise from before. They rushed over to them to help just as it broke free from Lizzie’s grip. Its claws slashed at Gilbert’s leg, slicing the fabric and skin like a blade on paper, and Aleksandr and Lizzie immediately pounced on it again. Their combined strength was enough to hold it down.

She tried to move, to crouch down and end all of this as Lizzie and Aleksandr pinned its thrashing body, but she couldn’t.

The last time was so impersonal. Poisoning. If she pretended hard enough, she could almost convince herself that it was someone else who slipped the lethal dosage of nightshade into their dinner that night.

Lizzie looked back at her desperately when she noticed Natalya hesitating and she knew what she had to do. What she had to do to keep everyone safe.

Her parents were cruel. Death did nothing to erase the scars from Aleks’ back or how cruel their mother was to some so kind as Katya. How the villagers suffered from their gross incompetence and violent suppression from anyone that so much as stepped out of place.

And really what would have their future been if they didn’t do anything? One bad summer could have starved their villagers while they sat up in their castle well off. Never mind, even imagining someone would come and save them, for there were rarely any guests and what few they had they were no kinder than their parents.

And what of the law or magistrates? The idea was laughable. There was nothing protecting any of them for the law did not apply to those in power, those with complete control over the vulnerable and helpless left to suffer at the hands of those who had nothing to lose.

A commoner could steal a pound of grain to feed their family and be executed for it, but a noble could act with impunity against any crime they committed.

The villagers had to have known the truth all along. Could read it on the siblings’ faces after they arose from their graves. But no one said a thing.

Within the first year Aleksandr lowered the astronomically high rents that their father had demanded which the villagers could hardly pay and still feed themselves. Katya hired an expert to teach the villagers the most advanced farming techniques and equipment to increase their surplus and bring them from the decades of advancement that had been hidden from. They formed a relationship with the village representative, the owner of the inn, to listen to their struggles – something their parents would have balked at.

Her parents were monsters.

Natalya brought the knife down swiftly to where the creature’s heart should have been. The ensuing shriek was louder than anything she had ever heard, but resisted covering her ears.

Only when it crumbled back into bones and sinew, its reanimated corpse sagging as if those strings keeping it alive had been cut, did she let go on the hilt of the dagger.

Lizzie loosened her grip on the body, breathing heavily and carefully moving to collapse off to the side.

Natalya felt hollow, all of the fight had fled from her along with the swirling emotions that had been her companion all these years. The guilt, the anger, the unsettling feeling that it all happened too easily, with not nearly enough drama and bloodshed.

She was exhausted.

Katya must have realized this as she felt soft hands grip her shoulders, maneuvering her off of the body and outside towards the gardens.

Natalya finally took a deep breath of the brisk night air, as it thawed her slowly, feeling less like a corpse and more like a real person, despite her undead condition.

Katya led her through the hedges holding her hand gently and Natalya followed without question. They stopped when they found a stone bench, just large enough for the two of them. Natalya could feel the knot inside of her start to loosen and she was grateful for the privacy.

Her sister took one of her hands in hers and looked her in the eye.

“I’m so proud of you,” Katya said to her.

It took everything in Natalya not to cry.

She had that uncanny ability to always say whatever Natalya needed to hear most.

Katya squeezed her hand when Natalya just nodded, not sure what to say.

Natalya looked up at a noise along the garden path, briefly freezing at the possibility of another attack. When she noticed it was Lizzie she melted.

Her chest was filled with the warmth which always accompanied the hunter’s presence, this time also with a hint of anxiety.

She had confronted the ghosts of her past and now she needed to confront her future.

++++

It was all over, the wraith – the siblings’ mother – was finally laid to rest. Hopefully to find some sort of peace, or at least enough to leave her children and the villagers alone for the rest of time.

Lizzie could almost collapse from exhaustion. She looked over to Gilbert who looked ever worse than she did, his wound still bleeding, though not seriously enough that he couldn’t still stand.

Lizzie was about to go walk over and help when she noticed Lord Aleksandr fretting over him, a panicked look on the other man’s face as his hands fluttered not sure what to do, insisting they call the best doctor available immediately. Gilbert only resisted saying he was fine and the other man was overreacting, trying to seem cross but Lizzie could tell her was delighted at the prospect of being spoiled. Gilbert had walked away laughing from wounds far, far worse than this, so she knew she had nothing to worry about from him.

She turned away, trying to remember where the sisters went, and picked her way through the crumbling mess of the room out into the garden.

She soon found them though, Lady Katyushka sitting with Natalya speaking quietly. Lady Katyushka noticed her first, and she tried to muster up a reassuring smile. Then Lizzie noticed her sister beside her.

Natalya looked like she was about to fall apart, an endless stream of emotions crossed her face from relief, to anger, to anguish. As if she was flooded with an uncontrollable deluge of emotions, barely reigning them in. Then she noticed Lizzie standing there, Lizzie’s face no doubt showing her concern for the other woman. She could tell it was highly unusual for Natalya to show her emotions so plainly.

Natalya burst into tears.

Lizzie’s heart immediately shattered into pieces and she rushed over to where they were sitting.

Lady Katyushka was watching her carefully as she found herself at a loss of what to do. What she was allowed to do.

“I’m going to go see how the boys are doing,” Lady Katyushka said, pulling herself away from her sister. She caught Lizzie’s eye and looked meaningfully at Natalya. Lizzie just nodded before turning her attention to the distraught woman next to her.

She took the crying woman’s hand in hers. It was nothing like the last time. There was no great spark or flutter of her heart. It was a firm grip, a silent way to tell the other woman that she was here for her while she let herself cry and grieve. To be some sort of anchor as she came to terms with everything that had happened in the last 24 hours, the last year, ten years, her entire life.

She could feel the other woman’s hand warm in hers, as if she could slowly unthaw just by Lizzie’s touch. Lizzie reached for the blonde, pulling her close to her, tucking her head under her chin and stroking her hair.

Natalya sobbed, an anguished cry of someone who had lost so much.

Lizzie’s heart wanted to break. She felt Natalya break her hand free from Lizzie’s as she flung her arms around Lizzie’s torso and clung to her tightly, as a drowning man would to a buoy.

How long had she been holding this in? Lizzie couldn’t even imagine the sort of toll such a dark secret would take on someone, especially that young. Sure, Lizzie understood desperation and violence. Well acquainted with it, from her time during the war, but a plan so risky, involving people you loved so much, to protect them and yourself from people that could destroy everything and everyone you ever loved? The what if’s alone would kill Lizzie.

“I’m so sorry,” Natalya croaked, her voice choked with tears. She just kept repeating it, over and over again. “I should have told you sooner.”

Lizzie could only shush her. Collecting her thoughts over what she would say next. How they would move forward from here.

Everything she had believed before was completely in turmoil.

She grasped at what she knew for sure and what she didn’t.

She knew that the woman before her had been through hell and did things that good people would have nightmares about. That she was as ruthless and fiercely protective as she was beautiful.

That Lizzie couldn’t imagine falling in love with anyone besides the woman in her arms.

That she’d only known this woman for a few days but ached to know every single thing about her. Her hopes, her dreams, what little things made her tick.

At least they’d already gone through the “share your deepest, darkest secrets” part of their relationship.

That thought made Lizzie snort, an unflattering noise that burst out of her as the absurdity of the entire situation hit her.

Murderess and soldier. Vampire and vampire hunter.

“We’re one hell of a pair, aren’t we?” Lizzie said, when Natalya looked up at her affronted.

Natalya’s face softened, her eyes searching Lizzie’s, looking for an answer.

Lizzie could think of nothing but one thing.

“May I kiss you?” Lizzie asked softly, smiling.

Immediately, the other woman reached up gripping Lizzie’s jaw and brought her lips to her own.

The kiss was a little off kilter. Their lips slightly missed the mark as Natalya didn’t seem to know exactly what to do, not helped by the way that Lizzie couldn’t stop smiling. Despite this, her heart felt like it was going to burst and nearly did when she felt Natalya returning her smile against her lips.

Lizzie could feel the vibrations of the woman in her arms laughing quietly against her mouth, making it that much sweeter.

Lizzie tilted her head just a bit and that helped her to slot her lips against the other woman’s. Just a gentle caress, a rhythm Natalya was slowly starting to pick up on. She tried to pour her feelings into those kisses. Gentle and sweet but firm enough to show that she really meant it.

That she wanted this.

That they would figure it out.

That she wanted it to be _them_.


	6. Chapter 5

The time after was almost a blur.

This wasn’t something anyone would forget for a while. The next day they needed to burn the body of the wraith to make sure it wouldn’t come back and they exhumed the body of the old lord as well, just to be sure this would never happen again.

It was rough as they explained to the villagers what happened, or at least a version of the story that would satisfy their anguish and suspicion. Having the hunters there actually seemed to assuage many of their fears and distrust, probably something about having a relatively impartial pair of outsiders to explain things comforted some.

There were teams of search parties that went out into the forest to try and find the wraith’s nest, as they found no traces of the villagers in the crypt. Eventually they did and the missing villagers’ remains were finally laid to rest.

It was tough work, but it was good to see people get some closure. It was one of the most difficult but rewarding parts of Lizzie’s job.

Over that last week though, Lizzie could feel Natalya pulling away from her. At first, they were close. Nearly always hand in hand, side by side. Not always talking, but just enjoying one another’s company. When she went off with Gilbert into the woods to look for any signs for any other monster, they would always return to Natalya and possibly one of her siblings waiting in the gardens for them to return. As if the idea of being cooped up in the castle without Lizzie was unbearable.

But this changed over the week and she understood. She would need to leave and probably never see the other woman ever again. It was rare that her work ever took her this far east. This was the last time she would be under the same roof as Natalya and her heart ached. It wasn’t the first time and it wouldn’t be the last time she supposed.

She repeated this to herself countless times over the last few days, as if repetition would convince herself that she didn’t really care as much as she did. That this didn’t mean anything special to her. As if she didn’t want to tear her heart out of her chest and give it to the other woman as a parting gift to remember her by.

She supposed that was a bit dramatic and actually kind of gross but honestly, Natalya probably would like it. She seemed like that kind of romantic.

The thought made her smile, but when she realized this her dark mood descended yet again and she went back to packing her luggage. It would be a long ride back to Prussia and she needed to steel herself for the lonely journey to come. It would be back to just her and Gilbert, the idea shouldn’t sadden herself as much as it did. But she had a suspicion she wouldn’t be the only one heartsick on their journey back. That did something to comfort her. Misery loves company and all that.

And then there was a knock at her door. Figuring it was probably just Gilbert she called out to say to come in, not even looking up.

When her guest said nothing as they entered (which was strange because Gilbert could hardly go a single second without making some sort of noise, especially the last few days), she finally turned to see who it was.

Natalya was standing there, looking as ethereal as ever in a beautiful dark blue frock.

“Oh, hi,” Lizzie said lamely. Her and Natalya locked eyes and Lizzie held her breath for what the other woman was about to say next.

“Hi.”

Lizzie’s shoulders relaxed and she felt all of her tension drain out of her body. Just by being in the same room as her, Natalya alleviated her stress and worry.

Natalya looked a little guilty as she looked at what Lizzie had been in the middle of.

“You’re leaving,” she said plainly, a hint of sadness creeping back into her voice, but maybe Lizzie was just imagining that. Seeing things she wanted to see. 

It wasn’t that Lizzie wanted to but, there was no reason to stay and she told Natalya that. She just shrugged and pretended to go back to packing, her heart not in it.

They lapsed into silence for a moment.

“You could always stay?” Natalya said quietly.

Lizzie’s heart leapt at the idea for a moment but she quickly shut that down.

“I’m sorry. I just. It’s not possible,” Lizzie said, shaking her head. “The work me and Gilbert do, it’s just too important to me.”

Natalya nodded, no doubt already expecting Lizzie’s answer.

“I understand,” she said, looking away. “But. There’s another option I’ve been thinking over…”

“Yeah?” Lizzie prompted, looking back to the woman before here.

“Do you love me?” Natalya said suddenly, catching Lizzie’s eye firmly. Her back straight and face blank, as if protecting herself from Lizzie’s answer.

Lizzie faltered. It had only been a week, but Lizzie felt more for her than anyone she had ever met. The strength the other woman had shown facing her mother and her past. The fierce love for her siblings. The vulnerability and wicked intelligence that she had allowed Lizzie to see in her. These were the things about her that Lizzie loved. These were the things that Lizzie could easily fall in love with and suspected she had already.

“I think,” Lizzie started carefully, wanting to get this right. “I think I _could._ ”

Natalya’s masked slipped briefly.

“I’ve grown very fond of you, Natalya, in the time I’ve been here.”

Lizzie stepped over to her very carefully.

“You are brave, and smart, and someone I could love completely and truly if given the time,” Lizzie finished, taking Natalya’s gloved hand in hers and raising it to her lips. She quirked an eyebrow at Natalya, asking for an answer.

“I think I may have a plan that could give us more time,” Natalya said quietly, as if she was afraid the walls would hear and keep them trapped here forever. “I could come with you.”

That.

That could be a plan.

“I was thinking it over the last few days. The logistics –“ Natalya launched into it when Lizzie didn’t respond. “I could come along with you and Gilbert, if only for a few months. You could still go on hunts. And I could help. Perhaps not always with fighting, but I’ve learned so much from my books. And with my status perhaps it would be easier for you to travel and gain access to certain places, and…”

Natalya kept rambling quickly. She did this when she was nervous Lizzie had learned. She’d no doubt been planning this for days already, coming up with a list of reasons and appeals to make her case. Lizzie didn’t hear half of it though because all she heard was _yeah this could work._ This could be her future. There could be a future with the woman she loved in it. A future with Natalya by her side.

But a pang of worry still shot through her. She slowly gathered Natalya in her arms, giving her plenty of chance to move away if she so chose. The other woman trailed off as if in a stupor. Natalya’s eyes darted down to Lizzie’s lips, no doubt remembering the last time Lizzie held her like this.

Lizzie licked her lips at the thought and Natalya seemed to lose all pretenses of not staring at Lizzie as her lips parted gently. Lizzie longed to pick up where they left off last time. Her arms tightened slightly, begging to be closer.

“And you would be okay with leaving your siblings for so long?” Lizzie asked. Refusing to do this, if it meant that Natalya would come to regret her decision.

“I’ve always wanted to see the world,” Natalya said, the spell seemed to be broken as she looked at Lizzie intently. “But I was always too scared.”

“And now?” Lizzie asked breathless.

“I’m not scared when I’m with you.”

Natalya reached up to cup Lizzie’s cheek and pulled her to her, kissing her with all she had.

Natalya moved her lips more firmly against Lizzie’s than last time, quickly picking up the rhythm of it. All Lizzie could do was moan helplessly against her lips as she pulled Natalya flush against her. Her mouth tasted of her morning tea with milk and honey.

It was not quite as frantic as last time. They were not moments away from dying and now would have all the time in the world.

At that thought Lizzie kissed her back again.

And again.

And again.

Until she was truly breathless and she pulled away laughing slightly, delighted by this turn of events.

“Truly, you would come with me?” Lizzie asked, barely containing her joy, searching her partner’s eyes desperately for any sort of doubt.

“If you’ll have me,” Natalya whispered against her lips.

The tightness in Lizzie’s chest unraveled and she hid her smile in the other woman’s neck, just below her jaw. She kissed the delicate skin there and Natalya gasped. She tilted her head to the side to give Lizzie more access to the expanse of pale skin. Natalya’s fingers fumbled with the collar of her dress and inch by inch more of her was exposed.

She trailed kissed down the column of the other woman’s neck until her lips met Natalya’s collarbones. She nipped her sloping shoulder and Natalya yelped. Lizzie licked the sore spot in apology and Natalya’s responding noise made Lizzie’s toes curl.

She needed more and by the way Natalya’s breath had gone labored, it seemed she wasn’t the only one.

Of course, that was when Gilbert burst into the room.

“Don’t you know how to knock?” Lizzie snaps at him.

Gilbert laughs when he takes in Natalya’s state of modest undress and their dishevelment. The noblewoman pulls her collar closed and shoots Gilbert the iciest glare Lizzie had ever seen. Lizzie was really happy she was not on the receiving end of it as Gilbert goes a little pale, flinching at Natalya’s intensity.

“When you’re, uh, not busy…” Gilbert gestures behind him and ducks out of the room.

Lizzie just sighs.

“I suppose we have that to look forward to?” Natalya says sarcastically. Lizzie lets out a huff of laughter and places a small kiss on Natalya’s cheek to appease her.

“He means well, and anyway, inns always have locks on their rooms,” Lizzie said, kissing her sweetly again on the lips.

Lizzie spoke to Gilbert about their added companion and Natalya spoke to her siblings about her wishes to travel with the two hunters. The three of them shut them off in one of the front parlors for a few hours, no doubt discussing what this would mean for them while Lizzie and Gilbert planned their trip back west.

Lizzie could feel her excitement under her skin.

She longed to be back on the road, her sense of adventure revived with the knowledge that she wouldn’t be leaving something precious behind.

“You’re sure you’re okay with this,” Lizzie said to Gilbert. She knew he liked the nobles but due to her nature, he had not gotten to know Natalya as well as she had.

“Lizzie. If you’re happy. I’m happy,” he said laughing, his usual cheer had returned over this last week. She had a sneaking suspicion that he was thrilled to have an excuse to return to the castle to a certain lord he had grown close with. “Anyway, Vlad wrote to me a while back about us coming for a visit. Might do our vampiric new friend to meet some other vampires, yeah?”

He nudged her side and she just groaned.

Gilbert was probably right but she wasn’t sure she was ready to deal with that much personality so soon again.

Gilbert just cackled at her pained expression.

Early the next morning they were off. The Braginskys gave them three horses. One for Gilbert, one for the extra supplies they now carried, and one for Lizzie and Natalya.

Lizzie felt Natalya arms tighten around her waist as the horse took off down the road and she took a deep breath, smelling the fresh air and Natalya’s sweet perfume.

She knew that this was the start of something new and with the future stretched out in front of her like a fertile plain, she couldn’t wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it!


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